AGRICULTURAL RELIEF
of $5,000,000, and that would remain in the surplus fund, would it
not, to carry over?

Mr. BLEDSOE. Yes.

Mr. Jones. Then the next year if there was a loss, you would
have that as well as the additional $1?

Mr. KincHELOE. But Uncle Sam would not have anything.

Mr. Jones. Uncle Sam would have the assurance that throughout
the 20-year period they are collecting twice as much as the loss
amounted to, and is not that the way any insurance company does?

Mr. BLEDsOE. Absolutely.

Mr. JonEs. For instance, during the war period they ran the rate
up here expecting great losses, and they did not have them, and the
insurance companies made a lot of money, and what the stockholder
had was the assurance that he would get a dividend.

Mr. BLEDSOE. They win. 15 times out of 20.

Mr. KincrELOE. I think there is a difference there in putting the
United States Government in the insurance business by act of Con-
gress, when that is not the purpose of the Government.

Mr. JonEes. I think the Government is not strictly in the insurance
business. It is taking a little chance there, perhaps, on one vear,
but on the average it will make up the losses; and it involves a good
deal less than a lot of these other plans some of us have been willing
to vote for. That is, there is less chance for loss to the Government.
We are discussing a bill here now in which the Government is taking
a chance on the loss of hundreds of millions of dollars.

Mr. KincHELOE. May 7 ask you one more question?

Mr. BLEDSOE. Yes

Mr. KINCHELOE. You sc ‘ou are going to take it on past results.
Do vou think that would ‘rue criterion *f this became a law?

Mr. BLepsog. The record oi the past is the only thing we can base
our action in the future on.

Mr. KincHELOE. But you are doing something here to interfere
with the record of the past.

Mr. BLEpsoE. Would you let me answer you, now?

Mr. KincreLok. All right.

Mr. BLEpsoe. We have based it on the record of the past, and
we are going to provide that each yearly experience will be added to
that experience, and your rate changed to meet the changed condi-
tion. In other words, the rate will be changed every vear if necessary,
Mr. Kincheloe.

Mr. KixcueLok. I understand you base it on the past, when we
had no Government insurance and no law of this kind at all.

Mr. BLEDSOE. Yes.

Mr. KincHELOE. Don’t you thinl- if we had this law where Uncle
Sam reaped none of the profits if t&  ~ s=-ratives made a profit——

Mr. BLEDSOE (interposing). Nc. You are— -

Mr. KiNCHELOE (interposing). Wait a minute, let me ask the
question.

Uncle Sam reaped none of the profits, and would stand all the’ loss
In case you lost; don’t you think that would create an overproduction
of millions of bales of cotton in this country?

Mr. BrLepsoe. No.

Mr. KiNncHELOE. You don’t?

Mr. BLEDsoE. No

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